Where Are They Now?

Raymond Templet

Tell us about your job/career. I am currently an investment banking analyst for Deutsche Bank, a global investment bank headquartered in Germany. Its primary competitors are similar banks with large presences in the US financial markets, such as Citigroup, UBS, Merrill Lynch, etc. I work in the New York offices, located on Wall Street in Manhattan. I began working there in June 2004, immediately after I graduated from Penn.

The job itself can be very demanding at times. My group regularly works late hours during the week and quite often works weekends as well. Our function is to advise our clients, which are large, national corporations, in a variety of financial matters and assist them in raising capital via the public or private capital markets.

Describe your living arrangements/cost of living compared to D’ville. It feels like everything in New York is expensive, but real estate in particular is very pricey. I rent an apartment in Manhattan. Most people my age do not own apartments because the asking prices are just too high or they do not plan to live in New York City in the long-term. Not owning a car makes the high rent prices more manageable, as I do not have to pay a car note, auto insurance, or high gas prices. Dining out is also very costly, but luckily, Deutsche Bank pays for most of my meals during the week.

Do you have a car there/ mode of transportation? I don’t have a car in Manhattan. It’s very expensive to keep a car here since you have to pay substantial fees just to park it. Additionally, the public transportation system is so convenient, that there is little benefit to having a car. Though New York is a large, bustling city, the subway system and wide availability of taxis make any commute easy to handle. My subway ride to work each morning takes about 20 minutes.

What do you do for entertainment? Many of my friends from Penn also took jobs in New York City, so my entertainment usually consists of hanging out with them. The long hours in the office keep me from doing much during the week, but I get see my friends on weekends. I generally save the tourist-type activities for when friends and family visit from Louisiana. When visitors come to New York, we typically see Broadway plays, the Statue of Liberty, the Empire State Building, Ground Zero, and many other sites as well.

Do you sometimes feel over-whelmed to be in such a large city? After living outside of Donaldsonville for six years now, I have become more accustomed to living in a big city. Living on campus at Penn helped ease me into a big city atmosphere in Philadelphia, but living in New York has been an entirely different experience. When I first moved here, I was very much overwhelmed. Just the amount of people that live and work here is pretty intimidating. Combine that with the speed at which the people in New York operate, the city can appear very hectic at first. However, with time I grew accustomed to the large crowds, loud noises, busy streets, and bright lights. I do not prefer it over a more peaceful setting, but it now feels more normal than it previously had, although I appreciate peace and quiet more than ever after living in New York for two years.

How often do you come home? I come home for major family events (weddings, baptisms, etc.) and holidays. I probably make it back home about 4 – 5 times a year.

Name a few major adjustments. Living in Philadelphia and now in New York City required me to make numerous adjustments. Each time I think that I may be getting used to things around here, winter comes again, and I remember how terrible the cold weather can be in New York. I don’t think I’ll ever fully adjust to that. You can certainly find good food in New York, but not the types that I prefer to eat. You can find great steaks, Italian food, and Chinese food in New York, but good Cajun food is impossible. For that reason, my parents and other family members regularly ship frozen packages of various kinds of food from home.

What is the first thing you want to eat when you get home? When I get home, my first meal is usually either gumbo or crawfish etouffe. I’ll eat almost anything when I get home, but I try to eat as much seafood and rice & gravy as possible.

What do you miss the most about living in Louisiana....grass, trees, the river? The thing I miss most is the people. I’m still very close to my family and friends in Louisiana. After the people, I think I miss just about everything else equally. From the food to the scenery to the music, I truly appreciate all the things that make Louisiana unique. Having been away for so long has engrained that in me.